"That's not a knock against our team. We've got plenty of guys in this lineup capable of hitting 20-plus home runs," White Sox starter Jake Peavy said. "We've got to tighten up and score any which way we can, but we are a good team, and we win and we play with the best teams in baseball when we run into some long balls and pitch the way we are capable of pitching.

"If you watched us play last year, that's really what we do. We seem to win when we hit the ball out of the ballpark."

Those home runs increase as the weather warms up at U.S. Cellular Field, as it has this weekend, meaning the White Sox pitchers also have to be on alert. Chicago's success also is predicated on strong efforts from the men on the mound, with solid defense behind them.

"This team, when you look at it, we are built on pitching and defense, and we got some guys who are -- throughout the lineup -- who do damage," Peavy said. "They have to do damage for us to score runs and win, and they will, especially when the weather warms up."

Scott Merkin is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Merk's Works, and follow him on Twitter @scottmerkin. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.